Osborne Clarke advises Cadence Equity Partners and Unigestion on sale of Aquam Water Services and Orbis

International legal practice Osborne Clarke has advised Cadence Equity Partners ("Cadence"), Unigestion and the management shareholders, on the sale of the UK's leading provider of outsourced services to the water industry, Aquam Water Services ("AWS"), and sister company Orbis Intelligent Systems ("Orbis"), to CD&R backed Indicor Inc.

Osborne Clarke's team was led by corporate partner Alisdair Livingstone, and included Hannah Stevens, Elaina Clarke and Imogen Drummond. Tracey Wright and Jonny Squires advised on tax.

By utilising AWS and Orbis' advanced solutions, utilities can reduce and account for loss of water, understand network asset condition and remotely monitor water abstraction.

With Cadence and Unigestion's support, AWS completed the roll-out of its smart sensors across its entire UK standpipe business. The group also accelerated R&D, launched the US Smart Cap product, UK Smart Hydrant and Ultrasonic products, achieving significant organic growth and positioning itself for further expansion in the US.

The sale will see the group more than double its enterprise value, achieving attractive returns for Cadence, Unigestion and its investors, who include Headway Capital Partners, CF Private Equity and Yana Investment Partners.

Osborne Clarke previously advised Cadence on its investment in AWS and Orbis in June 2020, which was one of the first UK private equity transactions to take place during the initial Covid lockdown.

Osborne Clarke’s corporate team is considered a go-to practice for many businesses, working with a range of clients from global businesses to fast-growth start-ups and market challengers. The team advises at every stage of company development across all corporate issues, from equity and debt fundraisings to M&A, IPOs and JVs.